One or more designated Festival Safeguarding Officers (FSO) appointed for each Federation Festival. For Hastings Musical Festival this person is Brenda Bailey. Phone: 07702803449

Best practice advice in the form of Safe Working Practice and Festival Child Protection leaflets, with support and training for all Festival staff and volunteers. Including clear reporting procedures for anyone with a concern about a child.

Appropriate recruitment and induction procedures for all new Festival staff and volunteers responsible for providing safe environments for everyone attending / performing at a Federation Festival.

Festival stewards wear an official identification badge stating their role. All teachers/parents/guardians/carers are asked to report all incidents of any nature to anyone wearing a badge. All reported incidents will be handled in accordance with the Safe Working Practice and Festival Child Protection best practice advice. In addition we will ensure the availability of a quiet area / room where concerns can be expressed in private.

For the duration of the Festival all teachers/parents/guardians/carers are responsible for the continuous care and supervision of their own children/pupils/vulnerable adults. If they are unable to attend personally, they must delegate their responsibilities to an identified adult and ensure that their children/pupils/vulnerable adults are aware of the identity and name of the person responsible for their care. This includes supervision throughout all public areas of the Festival venues.

For performance and changing areas the required number of licensed chaperones will be in attendance in the dressing rooms and back stage at all times. A member of theatre staff is always at the pass door to ensure that there is no un-authorised entry to back stage.

No unauthorised photography or video recording is allowed at our Festivals. Where parents/guardians/carers do not wish photos to be taken at all, then the responsible adult attending should ensure that their child/pupil/vulnerable adult is not included in official authorised photos.

Some children and vulnerable adults may have specific needs in order to take part. If this is the case we ask the responsible teachers/parents/guardians/carers to contact the Festival prior to arrival. The Festival actively seeks wherever possible to meet these needs, but must know beforehand in order to prepare support – or to advise that help cannot be provided on this occasion.

The Festival's Child Protection Policy and approach to Creating Safer Festivals for Everyone is published explicitly in our Syllabus, Programme and on our website. By completing and signing the entry form all parents / guardians / carers and teachers of entrants under 18 (or vulnerable adults of any age) confirm that they give (or have obtained) the necessary consents for the entrants to take part in the Festival. Without consent the entry to the Festival cannot be accepted.